Presidential Updates

Dear Colleague Vol. 1, No. 8

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As you may know, the Missouri House and Senate Budget Conference Committee came to an agreement Wednesday night. Their recommendation now goes to the full house and senate for approval. By law, the budget is required to be approved by tomorrow, May 6, which is one week before the session ends. When approved, it will move on to the governor for signature; he has 45 days to act on it, but will likely be more prompt prior to the July 1 start date for the fiscal year.

To remind you, the budget is not complete and official until all of these steps are completed. But at this point, we are confident the Budget Conference Committee’s recommendation will be accepted and approved.

I want to summarize the major components of the compromise package and describe their implication for Missouri State University.

Carrington HallOperating budget

You will recall that the Governor’s recommendation, which was adopted by the House, was for a 7 percent reduction in state appropriations for public higher education institutions. That is the premise we have worked with for the past several months.

The Senate recommended a smaller reduction. It proposed adding $20 million back to higher education so that the cut was 4.8 percent.

The compromise passed by the Budget Conference Committee was for $12 million to be added so that the reduction is approximately 5.8 percent.

For Missouri State, this means approximately $1 million more than we had planned to receive for fiscal year 2012. The Executive Budget Committee has a meeting scheduled for Monday, May 9, at which time we will begin discussing how best to invest those additional funds. At the legislature’s request, we will use a portion of it to help reduce the cost for students. We will report back to you on the Executive Budget Committee’s recommendation.

On behalf of the Board of Governors and the campus community, I want to thank the governor and the Missouri General Assembly for its hard work on the budget which again reflects the high priority all parties place on higher education.

Student studying outside libraryCooperative doctor of pharmacy degree program

After three years of hard work, our legislative delegation was successful in obtaining the on-going funding for the cooperative doctor of pharmacy degree program (PharmD) with the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). Our hope is to enroll the first class in fall 2012.

UMKC will receive $2 million to create a satellite program at Missouri State. The satellite program will be similar to the one UMKC has on the Columbia campus. To implement the program, UMKC will contract with Missouri State for about half of the annual appropriation.

Three years ago, UMKC received one-time start-up funding of $2.3 million which will now be used on both campuses to prepare for the program.

In the coming weeks and months, we will work closely with UMKC, the local hospitals, and others to prepare to launch this much-needed program. We want to express our thanks and appreciation to our area legislators for their good and persistent work in achieving this goal. It will be the citizens of southwest Missouri that benefit the most from this.

I hope this update is helpful to you. We will continue to communicate as we head toward the Board of Governors’ approval of the fiscal year 2012 operating budget at the June 17 meeting.

Sincerely,

James E. Cofer, Sr.

President

Dear Colleague Vol. 1, No. 7

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Spring on Missouri State CampusToday, we are posting revised and updated draft material for the 2011-16 Long-Range Plan. I invite you to review these items and provide feedback.

Strategic directions, objectives, performance measures and targets

This update focuses on the performance measures and targets for the objectives under each of the strategic directions. The chart for each strategic direction includes objectives which have been refined based on your input and further discussions by the work groups and Steering Committee.

The performance measures and targets for each objective also have been thoroughly discussed by the Steering Committee. Now, we need to have your input to further define them.

In some cases, you will note that we are still researching some baseline data. In other cases, you will see that the first initiative is to determine the target. All of this is expected and normal; the key is to determine the measures we wish to use, which we have done.

As a reminder, this is the document I will present to the Board of Governors as an update on the progress we have made on the plan.

We are already working on the next step, which is to develop specific tactics to achieve the performance measures and targets. These tactics will largely be determined by the colleges and other units that will be responsible for implementing them. We will share that draft with you when it is ready. And, a first draft of the narrative of the plan is in process.

So that we have the most complete information possible, I ask that you make every effort to provide your feedback on this draft by Friday, March 4.

Sincerely,

James E. Cofer, Sr.

President

Missouri State responds to governor’s budget recommendation

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Students StudyingLast night, Governor Nixon delivered his State of the State address and made public his proposed budget for fiscal year 2012.  As you probably know by now, he had good news for public higher education.

Specifically, Governor Nixon has proposed a 7 percent reduction in state appropriations for higher education.  For the Missouri State University System, that means a reduction of about $5.9 million in state appropriations.  This is significantly lower than the 10-20 percent that had been predicted for some time, and it is less than the $17 million “worst case scenario” we had as our target.

Obviously, the governor’s recommendation is welcome news, and on behalf of the entire campus, I want to thank Governor Nixon and his staff for their hard work to minimize the reduction as much as possible.  In the very short time I have been in Missouri, I have been struck by how committed Governor Nixon is to education, and higher education in-particular.  He understands that the state’s future depends in great part on the strength of our education system.  He has demonstrated that again with this measured reduction in operating budget, as well as his maintaining or increasing funding for the three statewide financial aid programs:  the Bright Flight Scholarship, the Access Missouri program, and the A+ program.

The members of the Missouri General Assembly also understand the importance of higher education to Missouri’s future, so I am hopeful they will support the governor’s recommendations. We will know in early May when the state budget is finalized.  In the meantime, we will be working with our local delegation and the leadership to provide whatever information would be helpful to them.

Next steps in developing the budget

Now that we have the specific amount that will be recommended, we can begin to be more precise in our work on the budget.  Toward that end, tomorrow (Friday, January 21), the Executive Budget Committee will meet to recalibrate both the charge to the various budget committees and the target reduction.  Dr. Eric Bosch, who charges the Executive Budget Committee, will report back to campus soon after that meeting, probably early the week of January 24.

I do believe the governor’s recommendation allows us to shift our focus from cutting to reallocating.  We have the opportunity to reallocate to support the priorities in the long-range plan and to fund the strategies that will allow our academic programs to elevate over the next several years.  The budget committees have the opportunity to generate the best ideas for accomplishing this goal.  This is an opportunity that not all institutions have, and we should not let it slip through our fingers.

Approach to tuition increases

Since the governor has done his best to limit the reduction in state appropriations, we need to do our best to hold any tuition increase to a reasonable rate.  Affordability and accessibility continue to be priorities at the state level, and we should embrace those goals as well.

Over the coming weeks, we will work closely with our student leaders to determine what tuition rate is fair and appropriate.  We will take the fee resolution to the Board of Governors at the April meeting for approval.

Part of the overall process

As I told you from the beginning, the budget process would have ups and downs, and be a “messy process.”  I also indicated that if we erred, it would be on the conservative side.  In response to requests from the budget committees, we provided a conservative target and worked with ranges and scenarios and options.  Like you, I am pleased to have more specifics, and I look forward to working with you to develop our budget plan for Fiscal Year 2012.

Thank you for your understanding, your patience, your involvement, and your good ideas.

Dr. James E. Cofer, SrSincerely,

James E. Cofer, Sr.

President

Dear Colleague Vol. 1, No. 6

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Classroom

I am writing to inform you about a Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan we will make available to eligible full-time faculty and staff on all campuses (Springfield, West Plains, Mountain Grove) in early 2011. The proposal was approved today (Dec. 17) by the Board of Governors.

Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan
Details and Timeline

As you know, we anticipate having a significant reduction in our state appropriations for Fiscal Year 2012 (July 1, 2011–June 30, 2012). With about 70 percent of Missouri State’s budget in salaries and benefits, there is little doubt that personnel will be affected by the reduction in appropriations. This is one element of the “smaller footprint” I have been discussing over the past several months.

Plan to accomplish two goals

The 2011 Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan is designed to accomplish two goals:

  • Provide maximum budget flexibility to address the reduction in state appropriations
  • Provide an opportunity to reallocate salary dollars to better compensate a smaller workforce that will continue to provide a high-quality educational environment.

Retirement eligibility for MOSERS and CURP are defined separately by each respective plan. Generally, they include an age-plus-years-of-service threshold for eligibility. According to recent lists provided by MOSERS and CURP, 213 faculty and 248 staff are eligible for the program; however, the program will be limited to the first 50 faculty and the first 100 staff who submit their paperwork beginning February 1, 2011.

Human resources to contact eligible employees

Carrington HallBy December 22, if not sooner, those eligible for this Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan will be contacted via personal letter by the office of human resources;  the letters are being mailed today (December 17).  Those letters will be based on the information provided by MOSERS and CURP.  If you don’t receive a letter and believe you are eligible, please contact the Office of Human Resources. In addition, those who are able to purchase MOSERS time through other service such as the military, in order to qualify, also would be eligible if the purchase is completed prior to the date of retirement. You should also contact human resources if you fall into this category.

Between now and January 31, 2011, the office of human resources will schedule and publicize a number of information sessions to answer questions you may have.

Our hope is that this voluntary plan provides a “win-win” opportunity with good options for faculty and staff and reduced costs and reallocation opportunities for the University. I will keep you posted as we move through this process.

Sincerely,

James E. Cofer, Sr.

President

2011 Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan

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At its Dec. 17, 2010, meeting, the Board of Governors approved the following Voluntary Retirement Incentive Plan. See the Dear Colleague letter for additional information.

Incentives

Select only one:

  • 25% of base salary with a minimum payment of $10,000 and a maximum payment of $25,000
  • University paid health insurance for the employee only until age 65

Timing of offer: Feb. 1–March 17

  • Applications/paperwork will be accepted beginning Feb. 1
  • Open for 45 days (to March 17)

Retirement date

  • May 1, 2011–Jan. 1, 2012 (staff)
  • June 1, 2011–Feb. 1, 2012 (faculty)
  • With the specific date subject to University approval

Participation limit

  • First 100 people to submit required paperwork (staff)
  • First 50 people to submit required paperwork (faculty)

Eligibility

  • Must be eligible to retire by retirement date chosen, as defined by the plan to which the employee is a member — either MOSERS or CURP
  • For all eligible faculty and staff on all campuses (Springfield, West Plains, Mountain Grove)

Post retirement engagement

  • Limited to half-time engagement for up to three years in separate contracts for faculty, and 1,000 hour engagement for staff on a case by case basis
    Restrictions are sometimes placed on the amount of work an employee can perform for a covered institution and still remain eligible for retirement benefits under MOSERS or CURP. In some instances, MOSERS may prohibit additional benefits if an employee returns to work in a MOSERS benefit eligible position. Eligible employees are responsible for knowing and complying with any such prohibitions and restrictions.